Australian Teen Faces Jail For Abortion

A 19-year-old girl from Queensland, Australia is facing up to 14 years in jail for “organizing her own miscarriage,” i.e. getting an abortion.

Tegan Simone Leach allegedly self-aborted at sixty days with pill obtained by a family member from a doctor in Ukraine. Leach decided to abort her pregnancy because she believes that she is too young to have a child. Although medical abortions are legal in Queensland, it remains an offense under the 100-year-old criminal code to access or procure an abortion. Pro-choice groups (which this article calls “pro-abortion groups”) have taken up Leach’s cause. “We’d like to see abortion removed from the criminal code and be regulated like any other health procedure,” said Kate Marsh, of Children By Choice. This is believed to be the first case in nearly 50 years in which a woman is charged for procuring her own abortion. [News.com.au]